We didn’t start the fire. It was always burning since the world’s been turning. We didn’t light it but we tried to fight it. Hear all about our fight in the Danger Zone - amazing stories, incredible music about military history. I’m Paul. Sit back and relax – if you can. If you’re driving don’t even think of changing stations – you know how dangerous it is to take your hands off the wheel and your eyes off the road.

Tag words: Xerxes; Artabanus; Greece; Darius; Magi;

In 480 BC a battle took place at the Thermopylae Pass, essentially between 300 Spartan warriors and the massive army of Xerxes, the mighty ruler of the mightiest empire that the world had ever seen, with 1,700,000 men at his command, so we are told. Although at another point we’re told that his forces numbered 5,283,220 men - pretty precise eh!

Now you may think that ancient history isn’t your thing. Modern warfare is what really gets your interest. But this was, in fact, a modern war. It was, if you like, a battle between the Chinese Communist Party seeking to become the ruler of our world, or the United Nations trying to achieve its dream, our nightmare, world government ambitions, or the corporate socialism ambitions of the multi-nationals, or the big governments of the West trying (who am I kidding – trying) to socialise our Western democratic nations that were built on the principles that these Greeks found themselves fighting for to prevent the end of their, and our individuality, because that was what we would have lost if these Greeks had lost their struggle 2,500 years ago. Because in this story the men of Greece, especially of Athens and Sparta, were fighting for their individual freedom. Like many people today, they refused to give up that freedom and to go into slavery, even though victory seemed impossible. They fought for their rights to be and remain individuals – and they won. Their struggle, crowned with success, offers hope for us today. It’s a story that we can learn from, a story that can give us hope.

We must make the frightening words of Dennis Prager, in his interview in May 2024, with former Australian Deputy Prime Minister, John Anderson, the truth of which is a possibility that we’re facing today, one that will not happen:

When you think of the many Aussies who died in World War II fighting for freedom and fighting for the West and Americans, of course, and other, I never thought I would ever say this, maybe they died in vain, because whatever they died for is no longer revered by the elites of the countries they fought for.

And to make this story of the struggle between the Greeks and the Persians even more interesting, the account that this programme is based on, is told by the very first historian in the world – Herodotus. The man who invented history. And Herodotus, because I don’t want to exaggerate his writing skill, is the best teller of history that has ever lived and will ever live.

Please join me for this story of the thrilling struggle that many of us today are fighting afresh for our right to be individuals and not to be slaves.

Tag words: Battle of Thermopylae Pass; Spartans; Sparta; Athens; Xerxes; Chinese Communist Party; People’s Liberation Army; United Nations; world government; Dennis Prager; John Anderson; Herodotus; The Histories; Darius; Battle of Marathon; Aristodemus; Battle of Salamis; Battle of Platea; Book of Esther; The Bible; Candaules; John Dickson; Is Jesus History?; Alexander the Great; Arrian; Anabasis of Alexander; Ptolemy; Aristobulus; Callisthenes; Aristotle; Persian War; Gospels; New Testament; Jesus; Tacitus; Annals; Tiberius; Pontius Pilate; Paul the Apostle; road to Damascus; 1 Thessalonians; memory; substantia nigra; Plato; Silvia Ferrara; The Greatest Invention; Themistocles; Delphi Oracle; Joshua Foer; Moonwalking with Einstein; Greek Enlightenment; Richard Cohen; Making History;

For the past few parts I’ve been like a dog with a bone. Looking at animals in war. In this programme I’m going to tell you about atomic bats, under cover pussies, tank destroying dogs and fighting chickens.

Tag words: Smoky the Yorkshire Terrier; General Douglas MacArthur; I Shall Return; the bat bomb; Lyle S. Adams; National Research Defense Committee; Donald Griffin; Project X-Ray; CIA; Project Acoustic Kitty; Great Patriotic War; anti-tank dogs; First Gulf War; Operation Desert Storm; Poultry Chemical Confirmation Devices; Operation Kuwaiti Field Chicken; KFC; grave of The Unknown Chicken;

Animal heroes in war. Today I’m going to talk about a great Australian dog, a navy cat, parachuting turkeys, flaming pigs and did we do something disgusting to the horses that did so much for us in World War I and a whole lot more? Hang around for a surprising answer.

Tag words: animal heroes; Avenue of Remembrance Yungaburra; Merlin; Razz; Andy; Nova; Herbie; Corporal Mark Donaldson; Taliban; Quake; Lieutenant General Harry Chauvel; Australian Mounted Division; Simon the cat; the HMS Amethyst; Dickin Medal; Spanish Civil War; turkeys; ancient Rome; war pigs; elephants in war; Alexander the Great; Pliny the Elder; bottlenose dolphins; Notty; Tanker War; Marine Mammal Program; SEAL; Brandon Webb;

Animals make great friends – but in wartime, they can and do save lives. Animal heroism even has it’s own Victoria Cross – so let’s look at what animals, including slugs, have done for us in war. And let’s look at the Victoria Cross for animals.

Tag words: Animals; Victoria Cross; Red Baron; Charles Schulz; Snoopy; Manfred von Richthofen; Gunner Cedric Popkin; Dickin Medal; For Gallantry; We Also Serve; Australian Defence Forces; Canine Operational Service Medal; Military Working Dogs; Steven Spielberg; War Horse; First World War; Horses; war chariots; Crimean war; pigeon; Angus Trumble; National Portrait Gallery; Royal Flying Corps; Tom Trumble; the Waler horse; Australian Light Horsemen; charge at Beersheba; Brigadier General Grant; 4th Light Horse Brigade; Lt. General Chauvel; Johnny Turk; Gallipoli; Slugs; mustard gas attacks;

The African campaign’s one of the most exciting of World War 2, even though it was just a side-show. It was on a small scale. So it’s easy to know the geography and the personalities. When you get to Russia the numbers and distances are so vast that it is nowhere as easy to get your heads around.

In Rommel’s diary, of his experiences in World War 2, he gave his account about why he had failed in North Africa, particularly at El Alamein. Perhaps also why the Axis had failed, and even more to the point why Germany had failed. But at the end of it, the failure of this campaign can mostly be laid at Rommel’s doorstep – not that Rommel admits that.

Martin van Creveldt, in his book Supplying War, gave his analysis of why the North African campaign failed – from a logistics point of view. I’m going to start with Rommel’s own account. Because he was forced to commit suicide on 14 October 1944, he never got to learn more about what had happened during the war, after the war had ended, from his enemies on the other side of the hill. His analysis was made during the war. So in some ways its more honest, although not many of us can be as honest about ourselves as we like to think. So here's what Rommel has to say – as I said mainly focussing on the climactic defensive battle of El Alamein.

Tag words: Field Marshal Erwin Rommel; North African Campaign; El Alamein; Martin van Creveldt; Supplying War; The Rommel Papers; Panzerarmee Afrika; Operation Torch; Vichy France; Malta; Tobruk; Tripoli; RAF; David Irving; The Trail of the Fox; Enigma machine; Ultra; General Enno von Rintelen; Adolf Hitler;

Do you want to hear about the time when Adolf Hitler, the Führer, apologised to one of his generals?

Tag words: Paul Carell; Foxes of the Desert; Field Marshall Erwin Rommel; Battle of El Alamein; Adolf Hitler; Führer; Panzerarmee Afrika; Field-Marshal Kesselring; James S Corum; Wolfram von Richthofen; Malta; Tobruk; Benghazi; Crete; General Auchinleck; Afrika Korps; General Jodl; Wolfsschanze; Winston Churchill; North African Campaign;